Judges have ordered a young mum and ex-footballer to hand over jewellery and property linked to her work as an accountant for a million-pound drugs gang.
The Liverpool Echo reports Faye Dunn was jailed last year as part of an international sting catching users of encrypted chat app EncroChat. Dunn, 39, was ordered to repay her ill-gotten gains under the Proceeds of Crime Act following a hearing at Liverpool Crown Court.
Prosecutor Nicola Daley told the court she had benefitted to the tune of £152,953.96 from her involvement in organised crime, while her assets stand at £69,747.70. She must forfeit her house, a Peugeot car worth £1,085, £2,000 of jewellery and small sums held in bank, pension, investment and cryptocurrency accounts.
Dunn, who was not present during the hearing, was given three months to pay the near £70,000 figure by Judge Anil Murray. She will otherwise face an additional eight months in prison in default.
It is an ongoing fall from grace for the one-time entrepreneur and footballing protégé, who played for England at youth level. As an 18-year-old she helped her team qualify for the semi-finals of the UEFA European Women's U19 Championship, netting goals against Denmark and Switzerland.
She later hung up her boots and set up a sports academy that aimed to help young footballers released from clubs back into employment, as well as a restaurant, a children's play centre and a Spanish flooring business. But as the pandemic reared its head she became sucked into criminality.
Using the handle "StiffNinja", Dunn used EncroChat to establish contacts in the illicit drug trade, becoming involved in the supply of cannabis and running numbers for organised crime outfits. She also smuggled cash to Spain, stuffing the money in her trousers on a ferry.
Prosecutor Ms Daley told the court during her sentencing last year: "She played an operational role within the drugs supply chain but appeared to have significant influence upon others in the chain, facilitating meetings between criminal associates in relation to the supply of controlled drugs, and also instructed others to undertake tasks such as the collection and movement of packages of both drugs and cash.
"Significantly, she appears to have acted as the accountant for the organised criminal enterprise and has concealed not only her EncroChat device but also cash when travelling abroad in order to evade detection by the authorities."
Dunn, of Whiston, Merseyside, was eventually arrested at Manchester Airport in June last year. She later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cannabis and money laundering.
Judge David Potter imprisoned her for three years and nine months. The disgraced businesswoman - once described as "intelligent, resourceful, kind, loving, generous and sadly flawed" - tearfully wailed "I can't believe it" as she was led down to the cells.
Sentencing, the judge said: "It is a tragedy to see a young woman facing a sentence of imprisonment after leading a life full of past and continuing achievements."
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